EC sends team to Mizoram after demands to remove state election chief

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Tuesday dispatched a three-member team to Mizoram to assess the situation in view of demand from the state chief minister as well as civil society groups to remove chief electoral officer (CEO) SB Shashank. The CEO’s exit is being sought after the EC, based on his complaint, transferred out Mizoram principal home secretary Lalnunmawia Chuaungo for allegedly interfering with the electoral process. Chuaungo has since been put at disposal of the Union home ministry. The EC team, comprising two senior Commission officials Nikhil Kumar and S B Joshi and Jharkhand CEO L Khiangte will talk to the chief minister, chief secretary, current principal secretary and leaders of Mizo civil societies to know the issues that led them to demand Shashank’s ouster midway through the poll process and try to find a way out of the impasse. Though the team will return only on Wednesday, it is expected to brief chief election commissioner O P Rawat by Tuesday evening so that an early call can be taken in the matter. Sources indicated that Chuaungo was removed due to a number of incidents over the past few days, allegedly amounting to interference in the poll process. These included “theft” of electoral roll revision forms in Mamit, where a majority of displaced Brus are from, and a direction to district election officers not to let Bru refugees from Tripura use identification slips for voting. “The principal home secretary, a Mizo, is an IAS officer of Gujarat cadre currently on deputation to Mizoram government. He is well-connected, and seemingly has the support of local NGOs and civil society. As for CEO Shashank, he has only done what he felt was in the interest of ‘free and fair’ election and acted as per rules,” said a Commission functionary. Meanwhile, seeking the CEO's exit, the NGO Coordination Committee, an umbrella organisation of major civil societies and student associations in Mizoram, began picketing in front of the CEO’s office on Tuesday morning. EC sources said the Commission was in constant touch with Shashank, who had requisite security. Polling for assembly election in Mizoram will take place on November 28.

Chief minister Lal Thanhawla had on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking immediate removal of the state CEO, saying that “people have lost faith in him”. Shashank’s removal is the only solution for smooth conduct of polls in the state, he had stated in the letter.